Mick Thomas Sets The Backbone For GoChristmasComeBack

Mick Thomas and The Roving Commission will take GoChristmasComeBack across Australia from November, with a live set built around songs that have become essential to four decades of performances.

by Paul Cashmere

Mick Thomas will take The Roving Commission on the road for GoChristmasComeBack from November, revisiting the songs that have become permanent fixtures of his live repertoire while making room for material from across his career. The tour will cover five states and territories before concluding with an All In Brawl at The Archie’s Creek Hotel in Victoria on January 1, 2027.

For Thomas, the backbone of a show is not necessarily the latest release. After more than 40 years of songwriting and performing, certain songs have earned a permanent place in the set because they have become part of the expectations shared between an artist and an audience.

In a recent Noise11 interview, Thomas identified five songs that are generally among the first written onto his setlist: Father’s Day, A Way Away, Step In, Step Out, Monday’s Experts and Taylor Won’t Believe. The remaining set can then be built around those foundations, allowing Thomas and The Roving Commission to move between Weddings Parties Anything material and songs from his subsequent career.

Thomas has a pragmatic view of the responsibility that comes with having songs audiences want to hear. Reflecting on the subject, he recalled a line from Dave Graney that there is only one thing worse than having a song you have to play every night, and that is not having a song you have to play every night.

That philosophy is central to the GoChristmasComeBack shows. Rather than treating the Weddings Parties Anything catalogue as something confined to the past, Thomas continues to regard those songs as working material.

Father’s Day remains an annual part of Australian musical life, particularly around the Father’s Day period, while A Way Away has a more personal significance for Thomas. He described it as a song that established a clear direction for him early in his career and one that he remains happy to use as a show closer.

The Christmas component also has a history. Thomas has previously incorporated Christmas into his songwriting and performances, including Christmas Day At Spencer’s. He explained that the end of the Australian year also became a useful touring period for Weddings Parties Anything.

While major international acts traditionally occupied the Australian touring market later in the summer, local bands could find opportunities in November and December. Thomas also found that his audience, which he described as a largely work-a-day crowd, fitted naturally into the end-of-year atmosphere of work parties, celebrations and Christmas events.

The current Roving Commission lineup has further changed the way Thomas approaches the catalogue. Jen Anderson’s return has encouraged him to look beyond the most obvious songs and revisit material that might otherwise be left out of the set.

Anderson has pushed for songs including Baked The Cake and First Night In Southeast Asia, including material she did not necessarily play on in the studio. Thomas said her enthusiasm has made him more conscientious about giving newer songs and less frequently performed catalogue tracks a place alongside the established favourites.

Brooke Taylor has also become more interested in the back catalogue, creating another pathway into songs from Thomas’ years after Weddings Parties Anything.

Thomas does not see a hard dividing line between Weddings Parties Anything and his subsequent work. The band represented the first 15 years of his career, while he has continued for a comparable period since. Some songs recorded after the band’s conclusion could, in his view, have been written before it ended.

That continuity is reflected in the GoChristmasComeBack concept. The shows can acknowledge the songs people expect while still allowing the repertoire to evolve.

The 2026 run begins at Theatre Royal in Castlemaine on November 6, followed by dates through Frankston, Birregurra, Heatherton and Warrnambool before moving into the ACT and New South Wales. Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia follow in December, with two consecutive performances at The Oxford in Leederville on December 12 and 13.

The Victorian leg resumes at Hepburn Palais on December 17, followed by Geelong on December 18 and The Corner Hotel in Richmond on December 19. The final event, All In Brawl, takes place at The Archie’s Creek Hotel on January 1, 2027, featuring Mick Thomas & The Roving Commission, Charlotte Le Lievre & Band, Norwood, Kyli Audist’s Lawn Dancing Set and MC Henry Wagons.

GoChristmasComeBack therefore brings together the essential components of a Mick Thomas show: songs with history, a flexible catalogue, musicians willing to challenge the setlist and an audience that knows which songs it wants to hear. After four decades, the familiar songs remain the foundation, but what Thomas places around them continues to change.

GoChristmasComeBack Tour Dates

6 November 2026, Castlemaine, Theatre Royal
7 November 2026, Frankston, Young Street Tavern
13 November 2026, Birregurra, Birregurra Hall
14 November 2026, Heatherton, Arco Bar
21 November 2026, Warrnambool, Whalers Bandroom
26 November 2026, Civic, Smiths Alternative
27 November 2026, Port Kembla, The Servo
28 November 2026, Sydney, Marrickville Bowling Club
29 November 2026, Newcastle, Hamilton Station
5 December 2026, Mudgeeraba, Wallaby Hotel
6 December 2026, Brisbane, Lefty’s Music Hall
10 December 2026, Thebarton, Wheatsheaf
11 December 2026, Fremantle, Mojo’s
12 December 2026, Leederville, The Oxford
13 December 2026, Leederville, The Oxford
17 December 2026, Hepburn Springs, Hepburn Palais
18 December 2026, Geelong, Eureka Hotel
19 December 2026, Richmond, The Corner Hotel
1 January 2027, Archie’s Creek, The Archie’s Creek Hotel